“Don’t play with me,” I said quietly.
“I’d never do that,”
he replied.
He knelt before me and clasped my hands.
“I’ve been developing a procedure that could reconnect damaged pathways using a regenerative graft. It’s risky, but your scans show you’re a viable candidate.”
I struggled to absorb his explanation.
“And you would perform it?”
“Yes. I would stake everything on this.”
All those late nights had been dedicated to developing a treatment for my blindness.
The possibility overwhelmed me.
What if the operation failed? What if I remained blind? Or what if regaining my sight changed the life I’d learned to navigate without it?
Despite those fears, I trusted my husband.
We scheduled the procedure three months later.
The waiting seemed endless.
As surgery approached, Nigel grew increasingly anxious.
His voice trembled while reviewing consent forms, and his hands shook the evening before the operation.
“Are you afraid?” I asked him as we lay in bed.
“Yes,” he admitted. “
But not of the surgery.”
“Then of what?”
He paused.
“Of losing you.”
His response confused me, but I blamed his nerves.
The following morning, nurses helped me onto an operating-room gurney.
Nigel squeezed my hand.
“You still have time to back out,” he said softly.
“I won’t,” I replied. “If this works, I want you to be the first thing I see.”
His breath caught before he kissed my forehead.
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too.”
Moments later, the anesthesia carried me into unconsciousness.
When I awakened, my head felt heavy. Thick bandages covered my eyes, and medical equipment beeped nearby.
“Nigel?” My voice sounded small.
“I’m here,” he said immediately.
Something sounded wrong.
Instead of happiness, his voice carried unmistakable dread.
“Was the surgery unsuccessful?” I asked.
“It was successful. You’ll finally be able to see,” he said.
Yet he sounded anything but relieved.
My
stomach tightened as he began removing the bandages.
Cool air brushed my eyelids when the final layers loosened.
Suddenly, Nigel spoke.
“Don’t hate me. Before you see this, I need to tell you everything isn’t the way you think,” he said suddenly.
